Patent-reading AI could strengthen early warning systems for hazardous chemicals
Patents are far more than legal documents protecting intellectual property. They are a vast source of scientific information about chemicals under development, often years before …
Davyne changes color beyond human sight, opening path to invisible security tags
While studying the properties of hackmanite, researchers created a new material called davyne that changes color in the near-infrared region. The color change cannot be detected w…
AI-driven polymer discovery could replace years of trial and error with closed-loop testing
In the realm of materials science, there is a plethora of datasets and tools at our disposal—the issue is how to effectively use these resources in harmony. Researchers at the Adv…
Light-triggered interface lets adhesive peel cleanly and rebond through 15 cycles
Adhesives are essential in electronics, vehicles and other products, but they can hinder repair and recycling when bonded parts are difficult to separate cleanly. A research team …
Soft nanoscale confinement prevents ice, exposing water's liquid-to-glass transition
An international collaboration of researchers has used ANSTO's facilities to uncover new properties of one of the most fundamental everyday materials, water, and answer an importa…
From peas to potatoes, AI identifies nearly 800 promising plant proteins for food and cosmetics
Scientists from Leeds' School of Food Science and Nutrition have developed an advanced AI process that can rapidly identify plant proteins capable of acting as emulsifiers from te…
Built to last or break down: Ring size tunes biodegradable plastic lifetimes
Biodegradable plastics should be tough enough for use yet able to break down at an appropriate rate afterward. Researchers at the University of Osaka show that changing the size o…
'Power of disorder' tames CF₄, a semiconductor greenhouse gas that can persist for 50,000 years
Among the gases used in semiconductor manufacturing, tetrafluoromethane (CF₄) is a greenhouse gas more than 6,000 times as potent as carbon dioxide.
BESIII sets world's most stringent direct limit on Lambda hyperon electric dipole moment
The BESIII Collaboration, led by the Institute of High Energy Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has achieved the world's most precise measurement of the electric dipole …
Quantum-optical spin glass could improve how AI remembers and learns
A new study has demonstrated that it is possible to make a network of atoms and photons that could improve how artificial intelligence stores and recalls memories. This network, c…
New enzyme mechanism explains how sulfur-reducing bacteria process elemental sulfur
Sulfur-reducing bacteria of the phylum Desulfobacterota play a crucial role in the global biogeochemical sulfur cycle. Species such as Geobacter sulfurreducens use elemental sulfu…
Surf's up: How the seafloor shapes breaking waves
A new study led by surfing scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego revealed the physical relationships underlying a pattern familiar to generations o…
AI suggests new physics experiments that could outperform human-designed setups
Research means asking questions of the universe. For centuries, clever minds have advanced science by devising ingenious experiments designed so their results reveal something abo…
Dual-purpose qubit design could speed operations while cutting quantum errors
Researchers from MIT have designed a new qubit architecture that enables qubits to interact with each other much more quickly while remaining very stable. This advance could somed…
Heat has a memory—and a new theoretical framework can track it
Heat, it turns out, has a memory. A cooling cup of coffee may not seem particularly thoughtful. At the scale of a kitchen, heat appears to follow a straightforward rule: it moves …
Quantum control algorithm looks to explain how birds migrate
The hidden world of quantum mechanics exists at scales many orders of magnitude smaller than living organisms, yet scientists have long theorized that quantum effects play an impo…
Electron spin unlocks magnetic control of hydrogen surface reactions
Chemical reactions at surfaces play a central role in many processes, including catalysis and materials synthesis. It is well known that the outcome of these reactions is influenc…
Five-metal 2D catalysts could convert CO₂ to CO without needing an extra electrical boost
Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is usually discussed as something the world needs to get rid of. Activities such as the burning of fossil fuels for daily use, including electricity and trans…
Trapped light generates nanoscale magnetization
Using an engineered metasurface that traps light, Cornell researchers have demonstrated a new way to generate strong static magnetic fields without using external magnets or magne…
Copper's oxygen-rich early oxidation layer could inform catalyst design and nuclear waste storage
Copper roofs lose their reddish color over time because a pale green layer of copper oxide forms on their surface, protecting the roof from further corrosion for many years. But w…
Making superconductors thinner can change how they accommodate magnetic fields
What happens when a superconductor becomes so thin that electrons can no longer behave as if they were moving through an ordinary three-dimensional piece of metal? This question h…
PACMAN AI framework for controlling fusion systems safely makes key decisions in milliseconds
Inside some fusion energy systems, particles hotter than the core of the sun can become unruly in a few thousandths of a second, far faster than any human operator can react. A ne…
Scientists observe Einstein's gravity in the quantum world
An international team including Nobel Prize-winning physicist Professor Sir Roger Penrose has observed a long-predicted effect of gravity on a falling quantum object for the first…
Sorry, this neutrino laser won't work, physicists say
Neutrinos are pervasive yet intangible particles that permeate the universe, streaming through whole planets, stars and our bodies by the trillions each second. The elementary par…